BY JEFF LINK

Over the past half century, coyotes have expanded their range across the continental United States and live in many North American cities—literally, in some cases, in people’s backyards. Their increased presence, says Katie Coyne, a senior associate planner and ecologist at Asakura Robinson in Austin, Texas, is one reason for landscape architects, planners, and wildlife managers to reexamine the design implications of large natural areas beyond their role as habitat for migratory birds and pollinators. Think of these areas as preferred foraging zones, she says, functional landscapes that accommodate coyotes and limit potential conflict with people and other species.

A recently published two-year study of urban canids in and around Madison, Wisconsin, sheds light on the issue. Researchers used radio collars and statistical analysis to assess the movement and home ranges of coyotes and foxes through a mosaic of residential, commercial, and public natural areas, including tallgrass prairie and oak savanna located within the University of Wisconsin–Madison Lakeshore Nature Preserve.

Breaking from established behavioral patterns in rural areas, where coyotes will typically displace or kill red foxes to eliminate competition for resources, the two species were observed foraging within a hundred yards of one another for extended periods of time. On a weekly basis for a month, a pair of coyotes visited (more…)